BourbonEnthusiast.com

At this week's blind whiskey tasting, we evaluated three ryes. Attached are the results. I would have thought the Sazerac Junior would have fared better.
Joe

I really love the WT Rye 101. And you can't beat the price.

Blue wrote:I really love the WT Rye 101. And you can't beat the price.

I Agree.
Joe

Interesting how well the WR rye did. Quality always comes out. WT in recent years is doing a great job on its whiskeys, as I just found with the current RB, a rich depth charge of a whiskey if ever there was one with the signature ripe fruit taste and smell of quality rye-oriented straight whiskey should have. At one time straight ryes were made to taste like that RB too (can one imagine 6, 8 and 12 year old ryes mingled as adroitly as this bourbon is?). This is all the more interesting because 4-5 years ago I found WT's rye and RB rather rough-tasting. Perhaps too much emphasis was being placed on Signature, Tribute and RR. WT is showing renewed interest in its regular brands and it will reward them with more sales. Much as I like Signature and RR, I find RB better: mingling is the key (in my view).

Gary

This past weekend ArtL and I decided to try a (semi?) blind rye tasting. I chose Wild Turkey Rye, Rittenhouse BIB Rye, and the new Sazerac ~7yo Rye. My wife poured the samples so we wouldn’t know what glass held what. After a brief nosing we both knew exactly which rye was in each glass, so next time we’ll have to let someone pick AND pour the bottles.

Art thought that since we pegged the contestants so easily he would be too biased to fairly judge them. Fair enough. I liked them all, and will give you my opinions. No charge

Nose: All three showed mint. The WT had its usual extra strong mint which gave it away. The Rittenhouse had that hard to describe HH nose. The best I can describe it is “wedding cake”. The Sazerac nose was fruity and spicy which was also a give away. I thought the Sazerac and Rittenhouse had the more complex noses.

Taste: All three had a full body and flavor. The WT had its characteristic minty taste, but not as strong as Rare Breed which reminds me of brushing my teeth with Crest. The Sazerac won here with a fresh fruity flavor.

Finish: Rittenhouse had a short boring finish, similar to many HH products (in my opinion). WT was medium length with mint and spice. Sazerac had the longest finish with fruit and spices.

These are all great Ryes at a great price. You cannot go wrong with any of them. I give Sazerac the nod because it has a vibrant spice and fruitiness that I found very appealing.

Cheers!
Mike